ABC locks in fall premiere dates for Grey's Anatomy, Scrubs and more

ABC have finally put their cards on the table for autumn 2026 telly, and if you’re mapping out your evenings already – or just wondering when Abbott Elementary is back – we’ve now got dates, direct from Deadline.

Scrubs Season kicks things off on 30 September 2026 at 8 p.m. ET.

Things actually start rolling on 30 September, with Scrubs Season launching at 8 p.m. They’re filming it now, so expect that lovely mid-season look: everyone’s a bit tired but still pretending they’re not. Only a week after that, Abbott Elementary comes back for its sixth season on 7 October at 8:30 p.m. ET. If you’re marking the calendar, yes, that's a Monday and a Wednesday – keep up, it’s American broadcast scheduling, nobody said it made sense.

The Procedural Parade

The following Wednesday – 15 October – is where ABC tries to stack the deck with its returning dramas, all let loose on the same night:

• 9-1-1 Season 10 at 8 p.m.
• 9-1-1: Nashville Season 2 at 9 p.m.
• Grey's Anatomy Season 23 at 10 p.m.

If you’re counting, yes, Grey's Anatomy is up to Season 23 – at this point, more people have worked at that hospital than have ever lived in a small town. The 9-1-1 pair returning back-to-back is hardly a surprise: procedural double bills are the most reliable thing in network land.

Also confirmed, the usual runway of sports and reality programmes filling out the autumn slate. Details on those are standard fare: college and NFL football getting their primetime slots, reality shows jostling for the leftover hours. More announcements from ABC still to come, apparently – but those are your tentpoles for autumn if you’re a scripted telly person.